Emmy and Bafta award-winning cameraman Doug Allan to bring his tour to North West audiences

The Bafta and Emmy winning filmmaker, who has filmed for world-renowned series including Hostile Planet, Forces of Nature, Operation Iceberg, Frozen Planet, Ocean Giants, Human Planet, Life, Planet Earth, The Blue Planet and Life in the Freeze, spoke to the Journal ahead of his tour ‘It’s A Wrap,’ which will showcase at An Grianan Theatre, Letterkenny on November 3 next.

Born in Dunfermline in Scotland, Doug has been involved with more than 65 films and made over 25 trips to the Antarctic and more than 30 across the Arctic. It is no surprise, then, that climate change and the environment, is something that is firmly on his mind,

This is something he also incorporates into his show, which he is ‘very much looking forward’ to bringing to the North West.

“In the show, I wind in a bit of a message about climate change conservation and try to get people thinking about how, the way we decide to live is up to us and can make a big difference to the natural world. I’m not preaching at people, but hopefully encourage them in the right direction.

“When you work in the Poles – I first covered in 1976 and the Artic again in 1987 – it changes visibly in front of you. You go back to the glaciers, to where they were and you can see how they’ve receded. You look at the population, maybe while filming for something like ‘Life in the Freezer; and you see one type of penguin. Then, you go back and see a different type of penguin, as the climate has changed to give the newcomer that advantage.

"It’s fascinating, albeit in sad way, to see how much is changing and you hope that something is going to happen, on our end, to bring it in the opposite direction. But, we’re still not doing nearly enough and it is becoming even more pressing and I think to be able to put the climate change message into the show is a privilege.”

He is heartened that there is now more awareness of the environment, particularly among the younger generations.

"Somehow, in the mid 60s to mid 70s, we somehow lost that awareness and took our eye off the environmental ball. Now, it’s much more back and in our face, especially among the youngsters. If we could have some of the older people to have the drive and willingness to take on change, if they had the drive of some of the youngsters and their attitude and push it up to politicians and business leaders etc, I think we’d be in a different position.”

Doug has had a fascinating career, that many people could only dream of, and he described this, as well as the opportunity to work with Sir David Attenborough, as a ‘huge privilege’.

He is also grateful to have contributed immensely to films that have changed how we view animals and the world around us. Despite travelling around the world and coming face-to-face with some of the most majestic and fascinating mammals and animals alive, Doug said he never gets complacent and is still very much in awe of them.

“There’s nothing like the connection you can forge between yourself and other animals and mammals.

And they all have different personalities, When you meet a bunch of elephants out in the open or are approached by a pod of dolphins, they have as much range and personality as there is with a bunch of people. Some may be hanging back because they're only babies, you can see the boisterous kids or the wise old adults. Some are friendlier than others and some are a little bit wary. That, to my mind, is fascinating.”

"When you’re in the company of something like a basking shark or any of the huge whales for example, and if you get to spend time in the wilderness with wild animals, you get the feeling of immense privilege. You can also get a buzz when you know that you and those with you are observing that behaviour and when it chills and relaxes and gets on in the way you want to to film it, you can have a little smile to yourself and think: ‘It’s because of the way I’m behaving that has meant this animal is chilled out the way I need it to.”

Doug’s show gives an insight into his many years of work and experience.

"Those 10 minutes at the end of a big series, when they take you behind the scenes, there are elements of that. I talk about the background of those movies, how the came about and I like to think it’s a bit of an insight into myself and how and why we make some films. I talk about the techniques and camera work and also about funny incidents that have happened.

" It’s a mix of stories and information and I’m really looking forward to going to Donegal, as the audience is always fantastic. The Irish seem to appreciate a good chat!”

For tickets, see https://angrianan.com/event/its-a-wrap-doug-allan/